Catalysed by the ubiquitous social web, our lives are becoming inseparable from that of our networks. We are addicted to the constant online “strokes” delivered by our friends, and crave their likes, shares, comments and retweets.

Like it or loathe it, much of what happens in real life (IRL) is intimately intertwined to how we behave in the virtual world. And we’re lovin’ it.Read More

Why does pain sometimes feel like pleasure? Why do we enjoy music and art even though there aren’t any adaptive advantages? When does “one man’s meat” become “another man’s poison”?

The answers to these human behavioural puzzles (and more) can be found in How Pleasure Works. Written by Yale’s evolutionary psychologist Paul Bloom, the book uncovers the “new science of why we like what we like”. By delving into the fields of anthropology, evolution, history, biology and psychology, the book investigates why we humans are so different compared to our fellow earthlings. Read More

What are some of the big issues facing the consumer of tomorrow? How should retailers, lifestyle businesses and fashion brands equip themselves to reach these customers?

Speaking at the recent Asia Fashion Summit, Ruth Marshall-Johnson, Senior Editor of Think Tank at WGSN, highlighted that consumer businesses need to consider five key trends and suggested how these should be addressed as follows:

I’ve just listened to a podcast by Derek Halpern of Social Triggers blog which presented a fascinating glimpse into the world of neuroscience and its impact on marketing. Interviewing Jonah Lehrer, author of “How We Decide”, the podcast explained that decisions are primarily made when there is an interplay between the stimuli that we receive and their influences on different portions of the brain.

Perhaps the most fundamental point is that emotions play a big impact on decision making. In studies where brain injury patients lose the use of their emotional brain centres (the limbic brain system), these individuals are often unable to make the simplest decision such as deciding where to have lunch and so on.